Title: Web Analytics for Dummies
Author: Pedro Sostre and Jennifer LeClaire
Type: Non-Fiction
Page Count/Review Word Count: 364
Rating: 6/10
Pedro Sostre and Jennifer LeClaire – Web Analytics for Dummies
Before I get properly in to the swing of things, I should start by explaining that I work in social media marketing and so I already have a pretty decent knowledge of web analytics, and I sit next to and work closely with someone who specialises in it. Then we need to consider the fact that this book was published in 2007 – almost all of the tools that it mentions are now outdated, and whilst it does cover Google Analytics in passing, the software is outdated and it’s not given nearly as much attention as it deserves.
But then, that’s to be expected when you pick up a book that’s eight years old, especially when it’s about the internet – everything moves so quickly that a book like this runs the risk of being immediately outdated as soon as it’s released, because the technology has moved on so much between the book’s creation and the proofreading, production and distribution process.
Here, the authors have done a pretty good job of trying to fight off the negative influence of time, by covering the principles and the strategies that an analyst will need to know as well as the technologies that are available to them. I’d estimate that roughly half of this book is out of date now, but that the other half still stands up well to the test of time and gives you a decent grounding in analytics that will come in useful if you work in marketing or on the web.
I still had to rate it a six out of ten though, because there were also a smattering of typos – not loads, and certainly not enough to put you off, but enough to become gradually noticeable as you turn through the pages. It’s possible that this is because of the very nature of this sort of book – you have to get it out quickly for it stay relevant, because otherwise it’ll be outdated as soon as it hits the shelves. Sometimes you have to sacrifice an quality for speed.
Pedro Sostre
